Christchurch Leads At End Of First Round

Press, Volume CII, Issue 30171, 1 July 1963, Page 14

Christchurch Leads At End Of First Round

The first round of the senior competition finished on the unpredictable note it began on when the leading teain. New Brighton, was decisively beaten, 14-8, by Linwood.

Next Saturday the competition will be divided into two divisions of six teams. The top six will play for the championship, but they will lose the points they gained in the first 11 matches. The bottom six teams which will play for the D.C.L. Shield, however, will carry their points forward.

Christchurch led the S.ia lifters for the final lanipionship by half a point from New Brighton and is a point from University, Old Boys and Linwood. This position could have meant one of the most interesting championships for some years if the nature of the competition had not been altered.

University showed a return to its best form when it beat Old- Boys, 19-11, in a freerunning match. The game between Linwood and New Brighton was a dour and uninteresting forward struggle Results were:— University 19, Old Boys 11. Suburbs 17, Belfast 3. Linwood 14, New Brighton 8. Albion 17, Shirley 14. Christchurch 20, Sydenham 12. Marist 14, Merivale 8.

Bright Back Plav

UNIVERSITY 19: P Lee. A F. Orme, J. C. Gibson (2). L. O’Reilly tries; Gibson two conversions. OLD BOYS 11: N. Marson a try. S. K. Henderson two penalty goals and a conversion.

The speed and combination of the University backs was the deciding factor in a bright and attractive match. The Old Boys’ forwards had a slight advantage in the first half and the excellent goal-kicking of S. K. Henderson gave them an 11-8 lead. In the second half University was far superior. Its forwards were quicker to the loose ball and. well led by J. N. Creighton, gave the backs plenty of possession which they used to some purpose. The Old Boys backs had to make most of their chances from broken play, and they showed a refreshing willingness to run and pass the ball even from defensive positions. However. University was the better team and the margin of five tries to one was about the difference in the attacking abiliy of the lines. P. A. Hutchinson was the key man in the University backs. He was given a good service by L. S Taiaroa and A F. Orme and his heady play created many chances for his three-quarters. He had far the better of his marker. Henderson. Q. T. Tapsell made some fine breaks centre and T. J. Morris was in good form at full-back. For Old Boys. Henderson, although having some defensive lapses, looked the most competent of the backs. M. O’Malley also played well. In the forwards, Creighton. P Lee and L. O’Reilly played vigorously for University, and I. Telfer. D. Hill and N. Marson were prominent for Old Boys. The referee was Mr A. R. Taylor.

Linwood Presents Strong Front

LINWOOD: 14: K. Gimblett a try; P. Jellyman a conversion and three penalty goals. NEW BRIGHTON 8: G. Stanley a try. a conversion and a penalty goal.

This was Linwood's game, and deservedly so. Before hall-time the handsome victory against Christchurch had become a hazy memory for New Brighton as the forwards struggled vainly to recapture the spirit they had shown the previous Saturday and the backs tried to tune their tackling to its usual high pitch.* But Linwood had its meaauje almost from the start through strong forward plav and greater variation in its back movements. Linwood, in fact, presented New Brighton with an almost unyielding front although it exposed itself foolishly at times by muffing good attacking chances.

New Brighton looked almost stale in the first half and although the side showed improvement after half-time the sustained effort usually associated with the team was lacking. Linwood contributed Jo New Brighton’s unhappiness’ by giving the opposing flankers few opportunities to develop theiri team’s game to the normal pattern. Indeed, in the second half, Linwood, to a certain extent, piayed New Brighton at its own game with K Fraser, the halfback. kicking over the heads of his forwards to keep New Brighton in intreat i Chiefly as the result of the solid driving play of its forwards. Linwood enjoyed a great territorial advantage in the first half. The backs were used frequently but the second fiveeighths. Jelly man, was seemingly absorbed with trying to evade R Dalton, one of New Brighton’s back tacklers, and Linwood’s moves from set play consequently came to nought. But in broken play Linwood posed a threat to New Brighton and Gimblett—who played narticularly good game at first five-eighths—exposed a weakness in defence when he eluded half the opposing players in a spectacular run which stopped two feet from the goal-line. Later he underlined this deficiency when he intercepted a pass and dodged and side-stepped past four men to score Linwood ? trv. New Brighton relied greatly on Stanley, -and although he leered all his side’s points with a splendid solo trv- and two goals it appeared that the club would have been wire to rest him tor the championship matches ahead. Re played with a bandaged hand and. although meeting the many demands made or him looked iaded towards the Jellyman whose goal kicking this season has not been successful rose to the occasion. He kicked with confidence and accuracy for 11 of his- side s 14 P< The’ referee was Mr C. J. Taylor.

Good Win To Marist

MARIST 14: O. Stopforth (2*. J. Harnett, tries: B. Connolly a penalty goal and a conversion. MERIVALE 8: T R. Brown, a try: L. Mitchell a penalty goal and a conversion. Superior play by Its forwards and a greater ability to attack in the backs gave Marist a good win over Merivale in a lively match at Malvern Park.

Merivale tried hard to use its fast backs but the forwards could not command a fair share of possession. That was the deciding factor.

The Marist backs moved well on attack and produced some bright movements. N. Keenan was an elusive five-eighths and J. Harnett and D. Bell were useful three-quarters. In the Merivale team. T. R. Brown was a lively half-back and L Deady played well at full-back.

O. Stopforth scored two good tries for Marist by energetic following up and J. Burns and E. Ward did good work in the tight. In the Merivale pack, J. D. McGuire and D. S. Pirie worked vigorously. The referee was Mr F. Goodman.

Entertaining Match

CHRISTCHUIVcB 20: R Wainohu. R. Morris. D. Stephenson, C. Mullaney, tries; G. Waterreus conversion and two penalty goals SYDENHAM 12: K. Tucker a try; A. Coleman a field goal; A J. Howard two penalty goals.

Christchurch trailed three times in an entertaining, fastmoving game before the forwards attained a significant superiority and Mullaney capped the recovery with a try after a run of 100 yards. The changing lead and the attempts of both sides to open up the play made it an interesting game, but there were many mechanical errors, and until the last 15 minutes the Christchurch pack was disappointing. Sydenham’s lighter forwards gave a lively display, with G. Riach and Tucker often prominent. B. Howard’s half-back service was sound, and outside him Coleman played well, until in the last minutes he dropped two vital passes. B. Smith, on the right wing, showed considerable pace. Wainohu was in tremendous form for most of the match, and J. Baird, in an unaccustomed prop position, was very valuable when the ball was being moved about. B. Davis was a safe full-back for Christchurch. and Mullaney was dangerous several times. His spectacular try was scored after Sydenham, down by five points, was awarded a penalty shortly before time. The up-and-under kick bounced from a defender straight to Mullaney 10 yards from his line. He seized an opening and outpaced the opposition. The referee was Mr P. S Breach.

Albion Wins In Exciting Finish

ALBION 17: J. Newlove (2). K. Smith and A. Harrison tries. Harrison a penalty goal and

a conversion. SHIRLEY 14: B. O'Loughlin a try, B. Richards three penalty goals and a conversion. In an excrutiatingly tense finish for Albion supporters, the team rose above itself in the last few seconds to win a 1 match it thoroughly deserved because It had already scored three tries to one. This gave it second position in the bottom six for the D.C.L. shield. Albion did a great deal of the attacking of the first half when B Saunders, jumping .in the line-outs. M. Robinson and B. Patterson, kept the forwards on attack, and the five-eighths, R. James and J. Adams, and a wing. Newlove, made some penetrating runs. W. Flavell was in typical bullocking form in the Shirley forwards and O’Loughlin looked the most threatening of the backs. Richards saved his side time and again at full-back. When Albion led 14-11 at halftime the second half became considerably tighter. .The tackling of both sides was tenacious. but Shirley missed some chances of taking the initiative when the first five-eighths. M. Gibson, kept kicking to Harrison’s hands. However, when Shirley got close enough for Richards to kick the equalising penalty goal with less than a minute to go, it looked as if Albion hopes were dashed. The side met the challenge magnificently and swung the ball both ways desperately. Harrison entering the line to crash over. He was attended for an injury and could not attempt the conversion. Mr F. B. Campbell was referee

Belfast Loses Again

SUBURBS 17: V C Sykes (2). B Metson M. O'Reilly (2) tries. A. W'hite a conversion. BELFAST 3: E. Williams a penalty goal.

After an even first half, the fleet Suburbs backs scored four tries to give Suburbs a decisive win.-Belfast tried hard in the forwards but lapses on defence by its backs, particularly when Suburbs brought in an extra man to try to create an overlap. proved costly in the aecond half. It was not a good match: there were too many handling and passing errors by both teams and the forward play, if vigorous. often became scrappy. In the Suburbs backs V. C. Svkes used his speed well and B. Metson and W Cotterell had sound games. A. White was an energetic leader, and M. O’Malley earned his two tries from good backing up. R- Holt did some good work for Belfast on defence and G. Wells and PSavage w’orked hard in the forwards. < The referee was Mr L. Hunt.

SENIOR DRAW The senior Rugby draw for next Saturday !•: Harewood Trophy.—University v. Linwood; New Brighton v. Old Boys: Christchurch v. Marist. DCL Shield.—Albion v. Suburbs: Belfast v. Sydenham; Shirley v. Merivale.

Genius is mainly an affair at energy —Matthew Arnold Science belongs to no one country.—Louis Pasteur.

Lower Grades

Senior Reserve—Suburbs 17. Christchurch 9; University A 18, Albion 0: Lincoln College 21, Marist 0: Teachers' College 40. University C 6: Sydenham 9. University B 8. Junior (first division*.— Christchurch A 6. Shirley 6: High School Old Boys A 13. Sydenham A 6: Teachers’ College 11. Linwood A 8: Belfast 13, Lincoln College 9: Merivale A 6, University A 6 Junior (second division).— Christchurch B 14. Suburbs 3; Sydenham B 3. Albion 0: University B 6. Papanui 3; Merivale 28. Burnside 3

Third Grade —University A 9 Lincoln College A 0; Teachers College 19, Christchurch 12: Lincoln College B 10. Marist 8

Fourth Grade—Burnside 19. Merivale 11: Shirley 0 Linwood 0: University 9. Teachers' College 6; High School Old Boys 18. Sumner 3. Under 20.—University 15. Christchurch 11; Linwood 6. Merivale 3: Lincoln College 17, New Brighton 6: Shirlev 14. Papanui 3. Under 19—Christ’s College 12, Cashmere High School 8. Sydenham 6. St Bede's 3. Belfast 14, Merivale 9; Suburbs 22. University B 111 Shirlev Boys’ High School 11. st Andrew’s 6 Secondary Schools—Shirlev Boys' High School A 8. St. Andrew’s 3: Christ’s College 17. Cashmere High School 5; Papanui High School 25. Shirlev Boys' High School B 0. West High Schoo) 17. Boys’ High School B 9: Riccarton High School 10. Linwood High School 0: Rangiora High School 6 St. Bede’s 3 Under 18.—Christchurch A 25. Merivale 8: Linwood B 21. Papanui 5; New Brighton 32. Christchurch B 6; Linwood A 30. Marist 5

Under 17.—New Brighton 18. Albion 8: Merivale A 11 Burnside 3. Suburbs 9. Christchurch B 3: Sydenham A 14. High School Old Bovs 8 Under 16— Belfast 20. High School Old Boys B 0: Christchurch 17. Linwood 3; Merivale 18. Burnside 3: New Brighton 14. High School Old Bovs A 8 Under 15 —High School Old Boys 25. Lyttelton 5: Hornby 10. Sydenham 3: Shirlev 13. New Brighton 0 Under Bst 71b—Albion «. Burnside 3: Merivale 25. Sydenham 0: St. Anne’s 14. Linwood A 8: Paoanui 21. Shirley 3: Kaiapoi 5. Hornby 3: Christchurch 6 High School Old Bovs

Under 7st 71b—Lyttelton 8. Shirely B 3; New Brighton 25. High School Old Boys 0; Merivale 17 Burnside B 0; Marist 9, Sydenham 6: Linwood 16. Shirley A 0: Hornby 22. Christchurch 0. Under 7st.—Christchurch 11. Linwood 0: Marist 3. Burnside 3. Under‘fist 71h A.—Burnside 6. Kaiapoi A 3; Merivale A 5. New Brighton A 3: Christchurch A 6. Suburbs A 3: Sydenham A 9. Shirley A 0; Albion A 6. Linwood A 3. Under 6st 71b B.—Merivale B 16, Bryndwr Marist 0: Suburbs B 14. Cathedral Grammar 6; Hornby 25. Christchurch B 3: Papanui 5. Lyttelton 0 Under 6st A.—Merivale A 9 Christchurch A 8: Burnside A 14. Hornby 0: New Brighton 12. Sumner 0; Suburbs 11. Shirley A 3. Under 6st B —Sydenham 22 Christchurch B 0: Shirley B 3. Burnside B 3; Linwood B 5. Albion 3. Under sst 71b A.—Sydenham A 6. Burnside A 0: Merivale 6 Lyttelton 3: Shirley 14. New Brighton A 0: Linwood A 19. Bryndwr Marist 0: Albion 3. Hornby A 3. Under sst 71b B—Kaiapoi 9. Burnside B 0: St. Mary’s 25. Sydenham B 0: Suburbs B 12, New Brighton B 0: Cathedral Grammar 9. Linwood C 8: Linwood B 9. New Brighton Marist 0: Sockburn Marist 5 Hornby B 3. Under sst A.—New Brighton A 14. Hornbv A 0: Burnside A 3. Linwood A 0: Shirley A 3. Christchurch A 3: Merivale A 12. Albion A 3. Under sst B—Papanui 20. New Brighton B 0: Suburbs A 13. Cathedral Grammar 0: Sydenham A 6. Linwood B 0 Under sst C—Lyttelton A 25 Christchurch B 3; Shirley B 0 Merivale B 0: Burnside B 15 Sydenham B 0 Under sst D. —Christchurch C 3. Albion B 0; Burnside C 23. Lyttelton B 3; Hornby C 21 Shirlev C 0.

Under sst E.—Sumner 6 Hornby D 0; Bumside D 3. Suburbs C 0

Points scored are:— W L D F A pts. Ch’ch. 9 2 - 210 109 9 New B. .. 8 2 1 138 61 8J Univ. 8 3 - 165 no 8 Linw. 8 3 - 136 94 8 Old Boys 8 3 - 123 93 8 Marist 6 5 - 136 121 6 Sub. 4 6 1 80 90 44 Albion 3 7 1 104 142 34 Meri. 3 8 91 146 3 Syd. 3 8 - 85 139 3 Shirley 2 8 1 76 126 24 Belf. 2 9 - 76 189 2